Testimonials

"Four stars and a Hero biscuit for excellent customer service!" - Shelia "Once again, very pleased with your product and service." - Barry "Thanks again for the great service and products." - Ric "I wish to thank you and the staff at Wolverton Rail for fast, efficient and courteous service - something not always present in today's hectic world. " - Charles, Australia "Excellent Service, Great Productions!" - Chris "Absolute treasure trove, marvellous." - Phil "Just want to say thank you for your Excellent service" - Anthony, Australia These are real testimonials and not made up!

Please note your order is processed by a human NOT a machine. In the unlikely event of getting an error on this page or it won't let you enter some of your card details, please contact me! :-) .

Q1. My DVD Player won't play your DVDs

A1. PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE ORDERING DVDs. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. YOUR DVD PLAYER WILL PROBABLY PLAY OUR DVDs BUT SOME MAY NOT - see also http://www.dvdrhelp.com/dvdplayers).

DVD's come in two major types. I call the first type "etched". These are like the the ones you buy from the High Street retailers. They have a silver "shiny side". Some people call them "glass mastered". They are expensive to master and are produced in huge quantities (10,000 copies plus). They will play on all DVD players. Some railway video producers use these e.g. Video 125.

The second type is called "burnt". They are called "burnt" DVDs because of the way they are made using a commercial DVD Writer. They usually have a purple or green "shiny side". DVD players bought before 2002 probably will NOT PLAY these DVDs. Most railway title producers produce "burnt" DVDs because of the quantities involved. They do not need to be "glass mastered".

To further complicate it, there are two main competing formats, DVD-R and DVD+R. A DVD player will have a "native" format that is one of these. DVD-R is the most popular. Originally you could not play a DVD-R on a DVD+R player or vice versa. These days, most newish players will play both formats but there can be problems with playing the non-native format particularly with Philips/Sony players (and badged versions). These are DVD+R native format and the early "will also play DVD-R disks" players do have problems with DVD-R disks... occasionally the picture freezes and stutters (this is called the DVD-R "freeze" problem) leading the customer to believe the disk is faulty.

Note, it doesn't matter how much you paid for your player. It's to do with it's age and manufacturer. Perversely, the cheaper "no name" players are often less trouble than some of the "famous name" brands.

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR DVD PLAYER WILL PLAY DVD-R BEFORE ORDERING (it probably will). Because DVDs are digital there is no difference in the quality of the DVD between DVD, DVD-R and DVD+R The quality of picture is often far better than that of VHS video even for archive films!

A2. WOLVERTON RAIL is a trading name of "ADVANCE MICRO COMPUTERS LTD". It actually says this on all the documentation. Back in 1987, it would have been daft using the computer company name to sell railway videos so I used "WOLVERTON RAIL" instead. However doing this has caused a few glitches. The credit card company will not let me use "WOLVERTON RAIL" on the credit card slips, which in a way is fair enough. That's why on this web site and on the sales receipt, emails etc it always says "WOLVERTON RAIL is a trading name of ADVANCE MICRO COMPUTERS LTD.". When you receive your order, the credit card slip has a sticker on it saying the same. It is attached to your sales receipt with another sticker. You can't actually remove the credit card slip without removing this sticker which repeats the same again plus "if you are paying by credit or debit card then the card slips & statements will show Advance Micro Computers Ltd and not Wolverton Rail". If you still don't realise then go onto google & lookup "advance micro computers" or something similar and it comes up with AMC's home page which also says "Our Wolverton Rail division (established 1987) sells over 4,500 transport videos/DVD.....".

Q3. You seem to promote B & R Videos at lot. You often send out their catalogue in my order. Are you the same firm?

A3. Err... NO! (also see above). B & R Video Productions produce excellent archive films but we have no financial connection with them. We are retailers, just the same as any other retailer. The only connection is that the owner is a good friend of mine, I produce the masters for his catalogue and video/dvd sleeves, and I always try to keep all of his DVDs in stock.

Q4. Does Wolverton Rail produce videos or DVDs?

A4. Currently, no! We buy videos either direct from the publishers or from long established wholesalers. We keep stock of our best selling titles, and the full ranges from the popular publishers. However others are to-order, usually within a few days. Doing it this way enables us to offer such a vast variety and range of transport videos. It is why our web site says that a title is "available" rather than in stock. This reflects what we believe is available from our suppliers. Most of the time this is accurate but sometimes (rarely) a publisher might stop producing a video and not tell us. Or one of our wholesalers may drop a publisher (even rarer) and we do not find out until we order! Hence our "E & O E"! (Errors and Ommissions Excepted)

I am hoping to produce our own DVDs in the near future. These will be archive film from the 1970s, and 1980s, complimenting the range from a well known video publisher. We are looking for archive cine film/video from this era and will pay royalities on the footage used. If you have any such footage please contact me. But note that you must own the footage. I have to be very fussy about ownership, copyright protection and intellectual property rights! And yes I DO know what a Western sounds like in full cry on the Cornish banks <grin>

Q5. Why have you dropped VHS videos? Why is there a big delay in my order?

A5. I haven't dropped *all* VHS titles. I've dropped some and I've been forced to do this because of very long delays in obtaining VHS videos. Except for B & R Video Productions VHS titles (which will continue to be available for the forseeable future on *both* formats) where a publisher has a DVD version of a video then I am not stocking the VHS version. Where a DVD version of a VHS video doesn't exist, then the VHS video will still be available (for example the Ivo Peter's Collection).

The reason is the publishers are reducing their stock of VHS videos, even their back catalogue, in preparation for a DVD version (that DVD version might be a year ahead or longer depending on demand for that video). Quite rightly, they are reluctant to produce another batch of VHS videos and will often wait until they get enough to justify a duplication run (often done by outside firms). Consequently, I might put an order in for say two copies and I then have to wait until I receive stock. Which could be weeks or even months. I'm not going to order in say 10 copies of a video title because immediately the DVD version is available, nobody wants the VHS version. That's what happens and I'm then stuck with stock I can't sell. Note that once the DVD version is available, some producers are stopping VHS production of that video entirely (for example Online Video, Video 125).

Q6. Why don't any of the email addresses on your web site work?

A6. Because we still get email address forging. Here the perpetrators are forging real email addresses to get you to open the email and infect your PC. I know they are trying to forge ours. The real email addresses that we use are NOT given on this web site. The ones you see here are SPAM traps. You can use them but your email will be bounced and you will be given a time-limited real email address which you can then use to get through to me. Please don't open any email that appears to come from any wolvertonrail.co.uk or wolverton-rail.co.uk email address shown on this web site e.g wrinfo, wrsales and especially "myorder" unless the latter is an order acknowledge (wrorders is now disabled due to spam).

Q7. Can I register? Why won't you let me login?

A7. The login facility is for trade customers only. When retail customers place an order, normally the shopping cart system "remembers" their name & address details (unless the customer unticks the "remember me" box"). It's your PC that retains this information not our servers. Card information is certainly not retained. Since you have placed an order, we have your details held separately offline so there is no need to register or login.

Q8. I received your Order Acknowledgment straightaway. Why haven't you sent my order?

A8. The order acknowledgment email is sent automatically by our shopping cart system and just confirms that it has recorded your order. It doesn't mean that your card details are absolutely correct or the prices are accurate or that all goods are in stock or that we've shipped your order! That has to wait for human intervention! (See also our Terms & Conditions)

Q9. I think you've debited my card and you've told me that my videos/DVDs are now not available.. Can I have my money back?

A9. The Order Acknowledgement does NOT mean your card has been debited. It hasn't. Credit card companies do not allow their vendors to debit cards unless the goods are ready for dispatch. We only debit your card when your order is packed up and ready for dispatch. See also our "Terms and Conditions".

Q10. I've placed an order, it displays in the black box the Items Ordered and the Cart Value. Then my order disappears. What's going on? Do you want my order or not?

A10. You've either got cookies disabled or probably something like Zone Alarm Professional (a firewall) installed with it's cookie deleting "feature" enabled. That means it automatically detects cookies & splats them. Cookies have had a bad press. We just use them to keep track of the order and nothing else. If you've got Zone Alarm, just tell it to ignore cookies from www.wolvertonrail.co.uk. Yes, I would like your order <GRIN>.

Q11. Why have you stopped using your PO Box?

A11. After all the years from 1987, I decided to stop using a PO Box! The reason? The Royal Mail in its infinite wisdom has decided to close the Olney sorting office and transfer to Newport Pagnell (a 15-mile round trip away). Almost all of our orders these days are by phone, fax or email and I've been giving out the Incon House address anyway... :-). But please note we are mail order only and not a shop. Our offices are shared with my other business, Advance Micro Computers Ltd (training/seminars/events facilities for hire!), and so callers by prior arrangement only, please!

Q12. I can't see anything on your web site. What's going on?

A12. The background colour on some video pages is LMR Maroon. Well that's what it looks like on my screen. On some screens it can look crimson lake.. <grin> If it is any other colour or white then maybe you've got background images switched off in your browser! The lettering on the menu is straw coloured so it doesn't look very good on a white background....

Q13. I don't think much to quality of the archive film. Why isn't it like Hollywood films?

A13. You are trying to compare footage shot with modern day equipment with footage often shot more than 50 years ago. The people who took the original film were/are enthusiasts like you. All they had was 8mm cine. Some of the more wealthy/fortunate ones had 16mm cine.They didn't have all the modern wizzo stuff like we have today. Film was expensive to buy and process. Sound was rare (that's why today we have to dub on the sound). Usually they only had a few minutes running time before the end of the film was reached. Often, the events they were recording were historically unique and would never be repeated. Consequently they tried to record as much as possible in as short a time as possible. Today's video editors have to painstakingly edit such film (if it still exists and hasn't deteriorated too much) so that it isn't a series of short sharp sequences and they have to add in the correct sound. Remember that consumer VHS/Betamax didn't appear until the late 1970's/early 1980's and the cameras were big, not very portable and *very* expensive. Typically in 1988 an amateur camcorder cost £1500 (I know because I bought one). Professional cameras (like the ones used by Railscene) would cost many thousands.

Q14. Why does my DVD have a fragment of padding (bubble wrap) inside the box?

A14. It's to stop the DVD coming off the spindle in the box. The spindle is essentially just a plastic clip. The clip holds the DVD firmly enough in normal use. However, when sending through the post, the DVD is knocked about quite a bit. With some of the DVD boxes, the clip doesn't hold the DVD firmly enough for my liking. It is possible for the DVD to become detached and rattle about in the box. Although rare, it can also get scratched. To stop this happening, I usually visually inspect each DVD before dispatch to check the clip and add the padding if needed. This is also the reason why all DVDs supplied by me are not shrink wrapped even if they were originally supplied by the publisher in that state.

Q15. What is this mailing list railvideos@wolverton-rail.co.uk? How did I get on this list? Will I get spammed?

A15. Set up on 25th.March 2006, it's a new web administered mailing list for anything to do with railway (& transport) videos/DVDs. It includes video news, release announcements, reviews etc. It replaced my previous mailing list system which subscribers could only administer by email. It makes things easier. I created the initial list of subscribers from the old mailing list and from the email addresses supplied in orders. Some people won't like this being on this list but I don't know who you are and it is easy to unsubscribe using the web page. I don't think there will be high traffic levels on the list. And you won't get spammed! Update June 2007 I've had to withdraw the mailing list from service. With unrestricted subscription and despite checks, I should have realised that spammers would attack it. Although they didn't spam the list, I got fed up of removing their spurious subscriber accounts. I will replace it with a closed mailing list. The Down Side is that new subscribers have to request a subscription and it is authorised by me. The Upside is that there shouldn't be any spammers.

Q16. I don't agree with the wording in your description of a video. How dare you say that 19xx was the best year for yyyy? I think 19zz was. You are totally wrong. I want the wording changed!

A16. No, I'm not wrong and I'm not changing the wording as it's not an error. Events in life are subjective. What you might like, I might not like and vice versa. Your opinion is your opinion. My opinion is my opinion. For example, you might think that say 1965 was the best for steam. There are others who would disagree and say 1967 was. A description of a video title contained within this web site is usually the same as the description written on the back of the video. It is not a review. Any opinions are therefore those of the original author who may or may not have been around at the time the film was shot (it might even be his own film). So that is his opinion and it stands. Me? I cannot have an opinion about the days of steam as I'm (only just) too young and steam ended early around Wolverton so I don't know what it was really like. Instead I just listen to the memories of family and friends, former and current railwaymen, and the many railway enthusiasts that I have met over the years. I do have an opinion on the BR corporate blue era and subsequently because I was there (here?) (This FAQ is the result of an email exchange)

Q17. Your web site description of the contents of my video is wrong. Also the video doesn't contain all what's written on the sleeve.

A17. If you are a publisher, then send me a better description and I'll change the one on my web site. My descriptions are often summaries of the information on the back of the sleeves. In the days of dial-up modem internet access to speed up web browsing, they were brief summaries or none at all. However in these days of fast broadband internet access, I try to get in as much information as possible. I'm having to do this retrospectively and it's quite a time consuming task.

If you are a customer or potential customer, then remember I don't produce transport videos/dvds so I am NOT responsible for their content, legally or otherwise. The descriptions are placed on my web site in good faith. So for example if a video purports to show a location and doesn't show that location then you should contact the publisher with your complaint. You cannot accuse me of mis-selling, legally or otherwise, particularly if you did not buy the video from me (where no contract of sale exists). That's why my web site contains "E & O E", Errors and Ommissions Excepted.

Q18. I've seen a copy of my DVD/VHS video on your web site. You didn't buy it from me so you must be selling an illegal (pirate) copy of my DVD/Video.

A18. Never, ever accuse us of that or I'll see you in court (there are lawyers in my family who rub their hands in glee at such accusations). We strongly abhore copyright infringement. Did you bother to ask us where it came from? Or read these FAQs? Since 1987, Wolverton Rail has always sold genuine new stock (not second-hand) and obtains stock in good faith either direct from the publishers or from well-respected and long established wholesalers. See FAQ4. Our web site includes DVD/VHS videos that our suppliers say are available. It does not mean that we have stock of your DVD/video. Do not assume that because we advertise your DVD/video for sale on our web site that we have ever sold a copy your DVD/video.

A19. If you are in the UK, probably not! B & R DVDs are post free 2nd class, UK only but this does not apply to VHS copies, signed-for, special delivery or overseas orders, any other producer or format. Now although the shopping cart system I use is one of the best and is very configurable, I still can't find a way of configuring it to handle that so instead I manually deduct the charge from your order when I download it. My web site has a "SPECIAL OFFERS" right hand side panel which explains all this. The side panel is always on screen, even when you place a secure order. So it's always there. The problem is some customers don't read it, see the P & P charge on the order confirmation and then ring Ray Jones at B & R to complain because the B & R adverts say post free (if anything, they should ring me because Wolverton Rail is not B & R - see FAQ 3). This is despite the fact that when you receive your order, my sales receipt shows you haven't been charged P & P!

(I was asked about this related question). Even wondered why the B & R section has offer codes such as WRBRoffer3 and a few years ago, I used to ask you to quote it? In shopping cart jargon, that's called a COUPON CODE and it allows a shopping cart system to alter the order based on some criteria or other, usually a discount on an order. Hey, I thought, that's a pretty good idea, maybe I could use that for the B & R Post Free offer! Well I tried & it wouldn't let me but I didn't persevere with it because some customers were not entering the offer code and still expecting the offer anyway! So instead I came up with the above scheme and just said post free anyway...<GRIN>

2011 Update: At long last I found a way to fix the shopping cart to correctly calculate B & R DVD postal charges. And it also involved upgrading to the latest version of the shopping cart system!

Q20. Why don't you like cheques? What's the matter with you? Do you want my money or not?

A20. Of course I'd like your payment! It isn't me who doesn't like cheques, it's the banks. They don't like cheques because it costs a lot of money to process paper and prefer customers to use electronic methods of payment. Now that's fine by me as it's a lot simpler, easier, I don't get bounced cheques and it allegedly saves trees (so they say). HOWEVER to discourage use of cheques my bank now charges me 75p to process the cheque as well as a paying-in fee! (remember Wolverton Rail is a business not a private individual and doesn't get free banking.) And, of course, electronic payment is considerably cheaper. All the banks are doing this so there's no point in changing banks....

Q21. Why did you send me loads of SPAM on 1st.March 2008. What are you playing at?

A21. It's probably best to read the log of what happened as it happened....**URGENT** 01Mar08 email list railvideos has been DISABLED. I'm sorry for all the bounced messages. I didn't expect that to happen at all. There should have been only 2 emails per subscriber, one from me sent last night and the other was the automatic monthly membership reminder. I will find out what is going on & fix it. Many, many thanks to customers who have contacted me to let me know. Best Regards... Ian @ 10:20 Saturday UPDATE@10:58 What is happening is some members are replying to the email rather than following the link to unsubscribe. So it goes into the list and gets broadcast. BUT it gets worse, really WORSE. Some of the email addresses are out of date and the bounces are being sent back to the list rather than back to the administrator. It shouldn't do this. Arghhhh!! I'm going to delete this mailing list and start again from scratch using a new mailing list name called news or similar. UPDATE@23:09 GMT The railvideos mailing list was deleted this afternoon along with ALL subscribers. Mailserver queues all cleaned out as well. Looks like the software was corrupted. I will replace with a manual list (back to the way I did it 7 years ago) that will only allow posting by me of DVD News and I will manually add/remove members. There will be a completely new member list and I will ask customers first if they want to be added to the list.

Q22. What's this VAT? I live in the USA & we don't anything called that.

A22. It's full name is Value Added Tax. Some countries call it Sales Tax or Purchase Tax. If you live in a country which is not part of the European Union (EU), such as such as the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa, then please deduct 20% Value Added Tax (VAT) from our full retail prices. We now use a "Currency Convertor" program which enables our catalogue pages to display VAT inclusive and exclusive prices in the viewers local currency with or without the VAT added. If you live outside of the EU but you want me to deliver to an address inside the EU, then I have to charge VAT (sorry).

Q23. What format are your VHS videos? What about DVDs

A23. All our VHS videos are to UK PAL standard format which covers most of Europe (except France), Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and South Africa among others.North America and Japan use the NTSC format which is not compatible with PAL format. My customers who live in non-PAL areas either have a multi-standard video recorder or they get their videos converted locally. Unfortunately, we cannot convert them for you because of UK copyright law :-(.

There is usually not a problem with DVDs. All our DVDs are UK PAL format and I don't know of any that are regionalised forcing them to only play in Europe. All recent DVD players are multistandard and will play any format. I used to believe that all DVD players worldwide were like this and single format players were never manufactured. However a USA customer found that his old DVD player wouldn't play a PAL DVD properly. He went out & bought a new DVD player at considerably less cost than his old player... and the new DVD player played the PAL DVD just fine!!!!

Q24. Why, when you've got thousands of customers, have you stopped selling DVDs from xyx publisher? They are still available elsewhere

A24. There's a few reasons but the main reason is the publisher doesn't live in the real world and I am getting a really tiny trade discount. This makes it financial suicide to try to sell those DVDs. I have to earn a living as well. I mean would you spend a lot of time selling a publisher's DVD if you were making 50p or less on the DVD? No, of course not! If you are a publisher reading this then you know the answer. I'm not asking a lot. Just provide a trade discount that is similar to the majority of other publishers...... you know... the ones I sell a lot of DVDs...